Where’s the Fun? Readers Rides and Blown-Up Parts of the Month

Why: This picture proves that a true gearhead’s passion transcends all boundaries of make, model, or genre—look at the variety here! Chip bought this 1970 GTX brand new when he returned from Vietnam and restored it 12 years ago. The tractor is a 1951 Ford 8N he finished restoring five years ago. The C10 is a 1967 shortbed he bought three years ago and is still working on.

Flooded Then Fixed

Who: Steve Roth

Where: Franklin, TN

Why: Steve bought this 1966 El Camino about 10 years ago. It was damaged and subsequently totaled during a flood in 2010. Undeterred, he rebuilt the car anyway, stripping it to a shell, repairing the wiring, and rebuilding the car. He’s nearly done, too—he’s just waiting on some of the trim pieces to come back from the polisher.

Gold to Petty Blue

Who: Jim Feist

Where: Mankato, MN

Why: Jim was the original owner of the 1973 Duster in the background. He had to sell the car after getting married years ago and always wanted to have it back. Though he couldn’t buy his original car back, he built one just like it. He started with a slant-six-powered Gold Duster and added some modern touches, including a 2003 5.7 Hemi, MDS’s Atomic EFI, A518 overdrive automatic from a Ram pickup, bucket seats from a 2004 Sebring, and the console and shifter from a 2005 300C. He took this picture with the new car parked in front of his old car.

Letters

5.0L Love

We have received several letters praising our 302 vs. 305 series, which is surprising because online comments tended to be negative. Keep in mind, this series is about working with what you’ve got. Millions of 1980s- and 1990s-era cars came with these engines. Not all of them need to be unceremoniously replaced with 350s.

“I love the series and can’t wait for more. It’s nice to see down-to-earth articles on everyday engines that many of us have in our rides!”

—Greg Chandler, via email

“I am very happy about the 302 vs. 305 articles by Richard Holdener. Using the TPI engine was inspired. I am excited about following this build.”

—Steven Horosko, via email

Burnout!!

“My 1991 Mustang. I just got it running after sitting in my garage for two years. The Traction-Lok isn’t working, so a rebuild is on the horizon, but it does a good one-wheel-peel.”
—Terry Schriver, Festus, MO

Blown-Up Part of the Month

“I am part of the pit crew for a friend’s Formula Atlantic team. The engines in these cars are 1,600cc twin-cam Toyota engines that make about 270 hp at 9,000 rpm. Here’s what happens when they drop a valve at those engine speeds!”